hydraulic fracturinghttp://wesa.fm
enSunoco Drops Request for Eminent Domain Authority for Southwest PA Pipelinehttp://wesa.fm/post/sunoco-drops-request-eminent-domain-authority-southwest-pa-pipeline
<p>Sunoco’s pipeline division has withdrawn its request that its Mariner East I pipeline be designated as a public utility, a development environmental groups are hailing as a victory.</p><p>The pipeline runs just south of Pittsburgh from the MarkWest Energy Partners processing and fractionation complex in Houston Pa. to an existing Sunoco pipeline in Delmont Pa..</p><p>Environmental groups say Sunoco was seeking to have the pipeline designated as a public utility by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission in order to obtain eminent domain authority.</p>Fri, 06 Mar 2015 19:46:26 +0000Liz Reid44511 at http://wesa.fmSunoco Drops Request for Eminent Domain Authority for Southwest PA PipelineGov. Wolf Makes Pitch for Severance Tax in Monroevillehttp://wesa.fm/post/gov-wolf-makes-pitch-severance-tax-monroeville
<p>Gov. Tom Wolf campaigned on a promise to pump $1 billion into public education, and he was in Monroeville Monday promoting his plan to do just that.</p><p>Wolf has proposed severance tax of 5 percent plus 4.7 cents per thousand cubic feet of natural gas extracted. He said the Independent Fiscal Authority determined that would amount to an overall tax of about 5.8 percent.</p>Mon, 16 Feb 2015 22:04:42 +0000Liz Reid43566 at http://wesa.fmGov. Wolf Makes Pitch for Severance Tax in MonroevilleCouncil Votes No on Fracking Moratorium for County Parkshttp://wesa.fm/post/council-votes-no-fracking-moratorium-county-parks
<p>Despite passionate pleas from local activists, Allegheny County Council on Tuesday voted down a measure that would have placed a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in county parks for the next two years.</p><p>The bill was written and introduced into Council by the residents themselves, using a provision of the county’s charter that has never actually been put into practice. Activists with the group Protect our Parks gathered nearly 2,000 signatures, well beyond the 500 signatures required to put the bill before Council.</p>Wed, 04 Feb 2015 11:19:22 +0000Liz Reid42878 at http://wesa.fmCouncil Votes No on Fracking Moratorium for County Parks"Protect Our Parks" Fights Fracking in Allegheny County Parkshttp://wesa.fm/post/protect-our-parks-fights-fracking-allegheny-county-parks
<p></p><p><span style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;">This Tuesday, the Allegheny County Council is scheduled to vote on an ordinance to put a 2-year moratorium on further </span>fracking<span style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;"> in county parks.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;">The </span><a href="http://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/2014/12/11/Joni-Rabinowitz-John-Detwiler-Common-sense-for-parks/stories/201412110127" style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;">ordinance was introduced</a><span style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;"> by the volunteer organization <a href="http://www.protectparks.org">Protect Our Parks</a>. Joining us in Studio A are Joni </span>Rabinowitz<span style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;"> and John </span>Detwiler<span style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;">, volunteers with the organization.</span></p><p>The office of Allegheny County executive Rich Fitzgerald said that he would veto any legislation related to a moratorium on fracking in county parks.</p><p>His office issued the following statement:</p><blockquote><p><strong>"The effort being led by Protect Our Parks is similar to legislation that was voted on previously and was defeated by Council. If such legislation were to pass, the Executive would veto it. He believes that blanket legislation sends a bad message to the industry and is a bad precedent. Each opportunity should be considered on a case by case basis. In the case of the Deer Lakes Park proposal, we were able to enter a lease that extends environmental protections to those communities that would not have been possible otherwise. That being said, the Executive has indicated that he has no intent of considering other drilling opportunities in the county at this time. He wants to see how the two current drilling operations will play out before moving forward with anything else."&nbsp;</strong></p></blockquote><p>John Detwiler<span style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;">&nbsp;talks about why Protect Our Parks wants to do away with&nbsp;</span>fracking in the county parks<span style="font-size: 13.63636302948px; line-height: 1.5;">:&nbsp;</span></p><p>Mon, 02 Feb 2015 22:14:39 +0000Essential Pittsburgh42776 at http://wesa.fm"Protect Our Parks" Fights Fracking in Allegheny County ParksActivists Urge Susan G. Komen Cut Ties With Fracking Industryhttp://wesa.fm/post/activists-urge-susan-g-komen-cut-ties-fracking-industry
<p>Health and breast cancer awareness advocates delivered 150,000 petitions to the Susan G. Komen offices in Pittsburgh Friday, urging the nonprofit to cut ties with the oil and gas industry.</p><p>Groups, including Breast Cancer Action, New Voices Pittsburgh and Food and Water Watch, are urging Komen to refuse a $100,000 check from oil and gas extraction company Baker Hughes, which, <a href="http://www.forbes.com/lists/2009/88/bigcompanies08_Baker-Hughes_SC95.html">according to Forbes.com</a>, saw a net income of roughly $1.6 billion over the last 12 months.</p>Fri, 24 Oct 2014 18:13:22 +0000Michael Lynch37722 at http://wesa.fmGov. Corbett, Consol CEO Offer Praise at Airport Drilling Kickoffhttp://wesa.fm/post/gov-corbett-consol-ceo-offer-praise-airport-drilling-kickoff
<p>“Energy independence.”</p><p>“Shale revolution.”</p><p>These were the buzzwords used Monday morning as officials gathered for a ceremony marking the start of <a href="http://wesa.fm/post/county-oks-drilling-pittsburgh-international-airport">natural gas drilling</a> activity near Pittsburgh International Airport.</p><p>The mood was festive — complete with music, appetizers, goodie bags and air conditioned portable restrooms — as Gov. Tom Corbett and Consol Energy President and CEO Nick DeIuliis prepared to take the podium.</p>Mon, 25 Aug 2014 20:45:39 +0000Liz Reid34828 at http://wesa.fmGov. Corbett, Consol CEO Offer Praise at Airport Drilling KickoffAllegheny County Council Votes To Allow Fracking Under Deer Lakes Parkhttp://wesa.fm/post/allegheny-county-council-votes-allow-fracking-under-deer-lakes-park
<p>In a heated meeting that lasted more than seven hours and included more than four hours of public comment, members of Allegheny County Council early Wednesday morning approved a lease agreement to drill for natural gas underneath Deer Lakes Park.</p>Wed, 07 May 2014 10:49:57 +0000Liz Reid28810 at http://wesa.fmAllegheny County Council Votes To Allow Fracking Under Deer Lakes ParkAllegheny County Council To Vote On Deer Lakes Fracking Tuesdayhttp://wesa.fm/post/allegheny-county-council-vote-deer-lakes-fracking-tuesday
<p>Allegheny County Council is set to vote Tuesday on whether to drill for natural gas underneath Deer Lakes Park.</p><p>The controversial resolution would allow Range Resources, in cooperation with Huntley &amp; Huntley, to perform hydraulic fracturing under the park, provided that no drilling activities actually occur within the park.</p><p>County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said if the resolution passes, the county will receive around $7.7 million up front and an ongoing 18 percent royalty on the value of gas extracted.</p>Mon, 05 May 2014 23:02:39 +0000Liz Reid28738 at http://wesa.fmFitzgerald Faces Council, Activists Over Deer Lakes Gas Drilling Dealhttp://wesa.fm/post/fitzgerald-faces-council-activists-over-deer-lakes-gas-drilling-deal
<p>Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald delivered his quarterly state of the county address Tuesday night and had plenty of praise for county departments.</p><p>Fitzgerald acknowledged public works for its handling of the roughest winter weather in recent memory, the health department for its successful efforts to improve air quality in the county and the medical examiner’s Office for a recent national award it received for ballistics work.</p>Wed, 19 Mar 2014 11:48:48 +0000Liz Reid26092 at http://wesa.fmFitzgerald Faces Council, Activists Over Deer Lakes Gas Drilling DealActivists Call on City of Pittsburgh to Divest from Fossil Fuel Industryhttp://wesa.fm/post/activists-call-city-pittsburgh-divest-fossil-fuel-industry
<p>Climate change activist Bill McKibben has been spending considerable time in Pittsburgh recently, first for the <a href="http://www.wearepowershift.org/conference/powershift2013">Power Shift 2013</a> conference in October, and on Monday to receive an award from the <a href="http://thomasmertoncenter.org/">Thomas Merton Center</a>.</p><p>The Thomas Merton Center bills itself as “Pittsburgh’s peace and social justice center,” and along with McKibben, they are launching a campaign to pressure the City of Pittsburgh and other regional institutions to divest from the fossil fuel industry.</p>Tue, 05 Nov 2013 18:48:54 +0000Liz Reid19316 at http://wesa.fmFive Candidates Vie for Open Seat on Pittsburgh City Councilhttp://wesa.fm/post/five-candidates-vie-open-seat-pittsburgh-city-council
<p></p><p>The race for the District 7 Pittsburgh City Council seat looks to be wide open heading into the election Tuesday.&nbsp; Five candidates are vying for the spot vacated by Patrick Dowd in July.&nbsp; Politically, the candidates are as diverse as the district.</p><p>A Democrat, a Libertarian, and a handful of independents all want to represent District 7, which runs from the Strip District to Highland Park and includes Lawrenceville, Bloomfield, Polish Hill, Friendship, Morningside, and Stanton Heights. &nbsp;</p><p><strong>Strip District Redevelopment</strong></p>Mon, 04 Nov 2013 08:36:00 +0000Liz Reid19206 at http://wesa.fmFive Candidates Vie for Open Seat on Pittsburgh City CouncilDiscussing Municipal Bans on Fracking http://wesa.fm/post/discussing-municipal-bans-fracking
<p>In 2010, Pittsburgh was the first municipality in the nation to institute a ban on hydraulic fracturing. Many others have followed suit, including the boroughs of Baldwin, West Homestead and Wilkinsburg, as well as State College, PA.</p><p>Now citizens in Youngstown, Ohio are looking at the structure of Pittsburgh’s fracking ban in shaping a their own ordinances. PublicSource reporter Natasha Khan recently wrote about the <a href="http://publicsource.org/investigations/youngstown-debates-ban-fracking">ongoing debates</a> in Youngstown as it pertains to jobs and environmental concerns.</p><p>Opponents of the Youngstown ban say it’s unconstitutional for a municipality to regulate beyond state and federal law. Similar objections have also been raised in Pennsylvania.Tue, 24 Sep 2013 20:05:29 +0000Heather McClain17071 at http://wesa.fmDiscussing Municipal Bans on Fracking Group to Urge County Council to Reject Fracking Proposals for Allegheny County Parkshttp://wesa.fm/post/group-urge-county-council-reject-fracking-proposals-allegheny-county-parks
<p></p><p>Nothing has been decided yet, but Allegheny County Council is considering an offer to develop natural gas found under Deer Lakes Park.</p><p>A new group made up of several grass roots organizations is planning to urge the group to say “no.” Members of Protect Our Parks will deliver their message at Tuesday’s County Council meeting.</p>Mon, 19 Aug 2013 20:52:42 +0000Deanna Garcia15094 at http://wesa.fmRising Marcellus Shale Production Might Not Benefit Natural Gashttp://wesa.fm/post/rising-marcellus-shale-production-might-not-benefit-natural-gas
<p class="p1">Despite a declining number of wells, Marcellus Shale gas production in 2013 is up 50% from 2012. According to Nick Nanos, President and CEO of Nanos Research, this can be attributed at least in part to a shift of focus.</p><p class="p1">“The focus has been on higher quality drills and wells that can yield a greater value,” Nanos explains. Fri, 16 Aug 2013 22:33:51 +0000Reid Carter14992 at http://wesa.fmRising Marcellus Shale Production Might Not Benefit Natural GasGasland Director Previews Part IIhttp://wesa.fm/post/gasland-director-previews-part-ii
<p></p><p>Filmmaker <strong><a href="http://www.gaslandthemovie.com/about-the-film/team">Josh Fox</a> </strong>joins us to talk about his HBO documentary "<a href="http://www.hbo.com/documentaries/gasland/index.html">Gasland II</a>," a followup to 2010's "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1558250/">Gasland</a>." Fox says his latest film demonstrates how the stakes have been raised in the controversial method of natural gas and oil extraction in the last three years.</p><p>Wed, 19 Jun 2013 12:01:00 +0000Katherine Blackley11675 at http://wesa.fmGasland Director Previews Part II